AI Agent Designs a RISC-V CPU Core From Scratch
- Published
- Source
- IEEESpectrumAI
In a significant advancement for AI-driven chip design, Verkor.io, an AI chip design startup, has successfully created a RISC-V CPU core entirely through an autonomous AI system named Design Conductor. This milestone was achieved in December 2025, with the resulting CPU, dubbed VerCore, boasting a clock speed of 1.5 GHz and performance comparable to a 2011 laptop CPU. Suresh Krishna, co-founder of Verkor.io, emphasized that their approach, which allows the AI to tackle the entire design process rather than just specialized tasks, is more effective.
Design Conductor operates as a structured harness for large language models (LLMs), guiding the AI through a series of steps akin to those followed by human engineers, from design to testing. The system autonomously generated the VerCore design in just 12 hours based on a 219-word specification. While VerCore has not yet been physically produced, it has been verified through simulation, achieving a score of 3,261 on the CoreMark benchmark.
Verkor.io plans to release the design files for VerCore and other projects by the end of April and will showcase an FPGA implementation at the upcoming DAC conference. Despite the potential of AI in chip design, experts caution that human intuition remains crucial, as AI systems can struggle with complex design challenges. While Design Conductor may streamline the design process, it is not yet capable of replacing human engineers entirely, requiring a team of experts to achieve production-ready designs.
Original report
AI Agent Designs a RISC-V CPU Core From Scratch
IEEESpectrumAI · Matthew S. SmithThis briefing is an independently written summary based on publicly available reporting and is provided for industry information and news discovery. The original report and source publication are credited and linked where applicable. RobotToday does not claim ownership of third-party source material.
Rights concerns? Contact [email protected] with the relevant URL and details. We will review the matter and take appropriate action where warranted.
More related news
- 1
- 2
- 3
-
4
RobotToday Weekly October 12 – 16, 2026 RobotToday · 1 day ago
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- 9
- 10
- 11
- 12
Related Suppliers
BioRobotics Laboratory, Korea University of Technology and Education
Korea, Republic of (South)
South Korean university research laboratory focusing on haptics, exoskeletons, rehabilitation robotics, and autonomous ground vehicles.
McMaster Manufacturing Research Institute
Canada
Hamilton, Ontario applied manufacturing research center at McMaster University; runs a 21,000 sq ft facility with seven research labs.
Robotics Education & Competition Foundation
United States
The REC Foundation is a US nonprofit that runs VEX-based robotics and drone competitions reaching 1.1 million students across 70 countries.
Da Shiang Automation Industrial Co. Ltd. 達詳自動化工業股份有限公司
Taiwan
Taiwan-based robotic system integrator founded 2013; 1,000+ robot projects in automotive, aerospace, and metal manufacturing.
Janome Industrial Equipment Europe GmbH
Germany
German sales subsidiary of Janome Industrial Equipment (Japan), distributing servo presses and desktop/Cartesian robots in Europe since 1984.
Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) 工業技術研究院
Taiwan
Hsinchu County, Taiwan applied-technology research institute founded 1973; over 6,500 staff developing autonomous mobile robots and AI perception systems.
Ortelio Ltd
United Kingdom
Ortelio Ltd is a UK cloud robotics research company founded in 2011 that develops AI platforms giving robots intelligence for service and healthcare tasks.
Parata Systems
United States
Durham, North Carolina pharmacy automation maker acquired by BD in 2022; builds robotic vial-filling and packaging systems.
Pensa Systems
United States
Austin-based AI retail shelf platform using autonomous drones and CV to detect stockouts; customers include J&J, AB InBev, and Circle K.
QNX Software Systems
Canada
Ottawa, Canada RTOS maker founded 1980 as Quantum Software Systems; now a BlackBerry division whose software runs in over 275 million vehicles.
Vision and Control Systems, LLC
United States
Full-service US automation integrator specializing in machine vision, robot integration, motion control, and PLC programming for manufacturers.
PBA Systems Pte Ltd
Singapore
Singapore precision motion specialist (est. 1999); direct drive motors, nano-precision gantry stages, and mechatronic systems for semiconductor packaging.
Robotics needs a service framework.
RSF defines a common language for robot service capability, lifecycle operations, certification pathways, and service-provider networks.
Join the RobotToday community on LinkedIn
Daily robotics news, in-depth analysis, conference highlights, and discussions with professionals worldwide.
